In the province of Ciego de Avila, the first settlers coming from Andalucia in the middle of th 16th century gave the city its cock-a-doodle-doo symbol. They nick-named "Town of the young rooster". The gallo (guy-yo) still sings twice daily from atop a monument at Hotel Moron. The word moron either means a nice view or a mound or is a reminder of a namesake village near Sevilla in Spain. First bullfights in 1851, first public school and first newspaper in 1855, first firefighters in 1868.

In 1871 started the building of a huge defense line (la Trocha) made of low wood-built towers which crossed the island from the south coast at Jucaro to here in Moron on the north coast, the idea being to block the separatists' troops from going west to La Havana. Also plying the same route were military locomotives turned into killing machines which bore names like La Júcaro, La Ciego, La Amparo, La Chiva, La Cuenca and the most famous, El Almirante. One was named la Carneceria, the butcher.

Ernest Hemingway lauded the numerous cayos of the Cuban tourist area called Jardines del Rey, (Gardens of the King) half a century ago describing with knowledge and affection both Coco and Guillermo keys (cayos) inIslands in the Stream.

Today, although it remains a popular hunting and fishing location for Cubans besides having many colonial and cultural sites of interest, most tourists just pass through (morons...) on their way to the keys or cayos.

These keys cover some 500 sq km, a kind of nirvana of scuba divers (in cayos Media Luna and Los Felipes : four centres with 22 dive sites), of beachcombers (21 km of white sand), as well as bird watchers looking for some of its 158 species, which, surprisingly enough have not left following the building boom which saw rise some 3,000 hotel rooms.

Cayo Coco, Cayo Paredon GrandeandCayo Romano make up the 785 sq km Buenavista protected reserve where hunting is a no-no : iguanas, stags and some 30,000 pink roseate flamingos live there in relative peace.

The keys are reached by a causeway or pedraplen (a huge three-year long project completed in 1980) on the bay of Perros (dogs) and extending some 90 km, a 50-minute drive to the end. More on (Moron, get it ? ; ) this below.

RESTAURANTS & PALADARESOne of the best rest rants of the whole Costa Norte : •Restaurant Maité La Qbana, Luz Caballero nº 40-B, entre Libertad y Agramonte - also rents three bedrooms. Two lovely women, Maité and Idolka, await to titillate your palate. Tel. (33) 50-41-81 Also : •Las Fuentes, calle Marti 169, Cuban and international : one of best in town, according to some advisors •Las Deliciasis across the street from preceding
•Doña Neli, snack-bar 24/7 and bakery •San Fernando, 24/7 also rooms for rent

SEE.KNOW.DO•The superb train station (1924) : stained glass ceiling, original phone booth, etc. An annual steam locomotive festival is held here in December •Casa Parroquial•Galeria del Arte•La Trocha de Jucaro•Loma de Cunagua•Museo de Arqueologia y Historia•Museo Municipal (Precolombian Art) •Around Parque Ignacio Agramonte, one will find the Iglesia Católica (Catholic church) which was once a prison; as well, the structure of the never-completed Teatro Reguero

EVENINGS, FESTIVALSCasa de la Cultura• Casa de Trovadores : Casa de la Trova Pablo Bernal, Calle Libertad 74, e/Marti y Narciso Lopez • Feria Internacional del Libro, the annual Book Fair with sales and literary presentations; each March. •Festival internacional del Bolero dedicated each year to a different famous bolero singer; first forthnight in June •Carnaval acuatico on nearby lake Laguna de la Leche with a parade of decorated boats from all over Cuba; each September.100 YEARS OF CULTURA LOCALWhen Moron changed status from "villa" (town) to that of ciudad (city), it already boasted the second largest bookstore in Cuba, La Moderna Poesía, the cinema cum theater venue, the Apolo as well as a music orchestra (Banda de Música), the stage theater Niza, the social club la Colonia Española and the first public library in the area • The local train yards Los Talleres Ferroviarios de Morón strated operating and employing a large part of the local workers as of 1922 and the actual fishing and hunting club La Casona is located on the original grounds. • Every year, the water festival is held on "milk lake" Laguna de la leche. It's called El Carnaval Acuáticoand dates from the 50's with coloufully-decorated boats parading.

TRANSPORTATIONThere used to be a Viazul bus route named Circuito Norte which started in the morning in Trinidad and ended in Moron. But the Sancti Spiritus management office of Viazul  although the route was popular from Trinidad and made money  decided there were not enough revenues on the back trip and cancelled the whole route. WTF, indeed !

Getting here means going through Ciego de Avila on a Viazul bus : from Trinidad, the Capital and the West arriving Ciego at 10:50, 16:25, 22:25; from Camaguey, Holguin and Santiago and points East, arriving Ciego at 17:30 and three more during the night; connecting by cab to Moron, more or less 15-20cuc (or much less in Cuban peso collectivo taxi) for a three or four-passager cab.

EXCURSIONSAbout 65km from town : Cayo Coco and its natural sites : Sitio La Guira (village), Cueva del Jabali, Playa Prohibida at the end of the key. A trail leads to a 15-meter high sand dune, Loma del Puerto •On horseback to Campismo Boquéron from Florencia to the dam, naturel decor (cliff, river swimming) and the hill where Camilo Cienfuegos battled in 1958. Horseback also in Florencia, hq of regional rodeos •Hunting in Aguachales de Falla reserve, a lagoon surrounded by lakes where abound pigeons, doves, ducks and fowl below some 24 position towers. Season 15 jul. to 15 march. Rate 85cuc/day, info at Hotel Moron •Turiguano (island) developed by Comandante Fajardo after the Revolucion : he built schools, a Dutch-style village, brought electricity and was first promoter of Cayo Coco's potential. Among its attractions, you'll enjoy Playa la Tinaja in Manati, the closest great beach to Moron, 25k away. There's the huge Laguna de la Leche (66 sq km), largest fresh water reserve in Cuba where fish (tilapia, carp and tarpon) are waiting to be caught and its famous flamingos (rowboat rentals) are waiting to be watched. You can also fish on lake La Redonda some 11km2, largest concentration of perch and bass in Cuba. Rates 36-65cuc including guide, boat, lunch and morning and afternoon fishing trips ; info at Hotel Moron •Laguna de la Leche 5 k away from centre, a 66 km2 lake for fishing (tilapia, carp and tarpon) and its famous flamingos (rowboat rentals).

EXCURSION SUBLIMA y SUPREMA : BOLIVIA, THE TOWN•A remote village, still "under the radar" and worth a detour ... for its almost zen-like calm. Once was a sugar town - the Cunagua mill was closed in 2003 - whose staff lived in wood houses. Enthroned at one end of what is now the central park, the beautiful casa [the most beautiful wooden house in Cuba? - photo above], of the Jefe - originally a rep of the Spanish owners; later, an American Boss until the Revolucion.

A unique  in Cuba  row of houses (80 in all) in which survive dozens of very poor old folks and the two generations of their young ones who have not yet left; a beisbol stadium, a cultural center with a theater; a barber shop, a cinema, a restaurant and stories to extract from its venerable and noble old habitués. Go before it is too late. Some say authorities plan to transform the chief's casa into a cultural center  that would be a grrreat idea. A local bus runs here from Moron, 33 kilometers west. Our photos here.

PLAYAS•Closest is in Manati (on Turiguano), via San Rafael, before the pedraplen and it's called La Tinaja•Cayo Guillermo : Colorada, Flamencos, La Jaula, Uva Caleta. Some say Playa Pilar is nicest on the island (photo above). Check it out, bro •Cayo Coco : El Peso, del Medio, Larga, Las Conchas with its thalassotherapy center or the last one at the end of the 100k road (langosta and beer by the beach, sailboat rentals); other free and deserted beaches are Flamingo, Prohibida and Las Coloradas •On Cayo Romano, playa Los Pinos, is for fishermen looking to catch jurele (pale yellow salmon) attracted by your best fly, guy.

HEED THE HINTS IN THIS FINE PRINT::: Make sure that in your first email or phone call you specify that you want to book a room in that particular casa and that you will reconfirm your booking on arrival in Cuba. Unless you only want a room in any house which may be of the same quality, not the specific casa you booked through photos on these websites ::: So as to not abandon expecting owners with empty rooms, reconfirm (or call ahead to cancel) your booking by phone as soon as you can after arriving in Cuba ::: Please write or phone a casa owner to cancel a booking. As late as it may seem, it allows them a chance to rebook. ::: Children under the age of 16 may share a bedroom with adults for free. Specify the child's age when booking. ::: Since October 2010, maximum bedroom capacity is not limited to two adults::: Also, large casas are not limited to renting only two bedrooms per night. ::: At the end of the casa name, the V signals the casa was suggested by travelers or owners but not verified by the website staff. If you try it and like it, write us about it. ::: Unless otherwise mentioned, the average room rates and service prices are : 20-25cuc per bedroom per night [up to 40+ for 4 in a room]; breakfasts 3-5cuc, dinners 7-10cuc. ::: Any casa particular anywhere in Cuba must have a hot water shower, otherwise it cannot have a permit to rent ::: Please share yourComplaints, comments & suggestions webmaster [@]cubacasas.net

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